Table 2.

Recommended short-, medium- and long-term management measures to microplastic (MP) pollution in the Amazon biome.

Management Proposal	Description	Expected Impact
Short-Term
Waste management improvement	Immediate improvements in waste collection, recycling, and disposal systems.	Decrease plastic and MP input to the environment.
Implementation of awareness campaigns	Launch educational campaigns and actions targeting communities, industries, and stakeholders to raise awareness about the sources, impacts and mitigation of MP pollution.	Increase public participation in the prevention and mitigation of MP pollution.
Funding of science and research inniatitives	Through stakeholders and institutions engagement, promote increase in fundings to allow research on plastic and microplastic pollution and mitigation	Increase in quality and quantity of data and publications for the Amazon
Policy enforcement	Strengthen enforcement of existing environmental regulations on waste management and water treatment.	Reinforce existing measures on plastic pollution, by applying the laws and regulations already approved by local states.
Medium-Term
Infrastructure improvement	Improve sewage and waste treatment facilities to include technologies capable of filtering MPs, especially in urban centers.	Reduce the input of MPs from urban runoff into the waterways.
Building awareness, education and societal participation	Foster educational programs in schools, universities and the third sector, to actively engage the different sectors of society for effective mitigation of plastic and MP pollution	Stablishment of permanent programs to raise public awareness and consequently the reduction of plastic pollution
Research and monitoring	Expand comprehensive studies on distribution, sources, sinks and effects of MPs. Establish regular monitoring programs of MP pollution. Development of bio-plastics derived from local materials and biomass	Improve knowledge for the academic community and data for informed decision-making.
Long-Term
Policy and regulation development	Develop and implement regulations especificaly targeting the prevetion and the mitigation of plastic and MP pollution (e.g. banning of single use, disposable plastics).	Systematic reduction in plastic and MP pollution from urban sources.
Implementation of sustainable economic practices	Promote and support sustainable practices and plastic-free alternative materials in industries such as fishing, agriculture, and tourism	Long-term decrease in MP pollution sources.
Restoration initiatives	Initiate projects to restore affected habitats and investigate methods to reduce and recicle MPs from the environment safely.	Rehabilitation of environment and reduction in MP impacts.
Sustainable Urban Planning	Integrate MP pollution control into urban planning and development policies to manage future growth sustainably.	Prevent future MP pollution by considering environmental impacts in urban development.
Economic Incentives	Implement taxes and subsidies to encourage reduction in plastic use and enhance recycling efforts. Introduce regulations for industries to adopt bio-based polymers.	Systematic reduction in MP pollution.